Primate

After nine years with no babies in the Weeper Capuchin enclosure at Israel's Zoological Center Tel Aviv, Kopatch, a 15 year old female gave birth to a tiny baby. Kopatch's rank in the group is usually very low, but since she gave birth it seems to have risen. The capuchin group arrived at the Safari on May 25th 1987, after being smuggled into Germany and confiscated by the government there. They were kept in the Hannover Zoo until they could find a new home.

Photo credits: Tibor Jager

Capuchins are the smartest monkeys among the "New World monkeys". They are famous for their tool use and nut cracking ability, using two stones- one as an anvil and the other to crack the nut with.

Orange is everywhere to be found at the Los Angeles Zoo this Halloween season starting with the newest orange-red, shaggy haired addition to the Red Ape Rainforest – a newly born Bornean Orangutan. This is the second baby for the Zoo’s female Bornean Orangutan, Kalim. She is one of four adult females in the Red Ape Rainforest. Father to the new arrival is Minyak, one of two orangutan males at the Zoo. Guests can see the baby Orangutan and her older sister Berani who was born in 2005.

Photo credits: Tad Motoyama

Orangutans are native to the Indonesian islands of Borneo and Sumatra. In the Malay language orang means person and utan means forest. Decked out in long, shaggy, orange-red hair, orangutans are the largest tree-dwelling mammals. Bornean orangutans are endangered and Sumatran orangutans are critically endangered. In the last 60 years, it’s estimated that there has been more than a 50 percent decline in the orangutan population. This decline is primarily attributed to habitat loss.

A tiny baby clings to it's father's fur at the Wellington Zoo in New Zealand.... a bit of a surprise to the Keepers there Friday morning. They had suspected that now-mom Piccu was pregnant, but at some point during the night on October 6, the Zoo's 6th Pygmy marmoset came into the world.

The baby's sex won't be determined for 30-60 days when it has it's first well-baby check up. During that time, in fact up until about three months, the father will continue to carry the baby, excpet when it goes back to it's mother to nurse. Once gender is determined, the Keepers will come up with a name.

Pygmy marmosets are the smallest monkey in the world, with an adult weighing about 3-5 ounces (85-140 gms) and from head to tail reaching the length of about 13 inches (330 mm). They are not listed as Endangered but they are in danger of becoming such due primarily to habitat destruction. The fact that they are extrememly adaptable to their environment helps quite a bit. They live in the Amazon rainforest of Columbia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Brazil and Peru and can be found high up in trees near riverbeds.

First-time mom Lu Lu, a rare Francois Langur, gave birth to a brilliant red-haired baby on September 1 at the London Zoo. Lu Lu and dad Neo have dark black fur. The baby, who is named Tango, is covered head-to-toe in bright orange fur, making it quite tricky to see the family resemblance.

Zookeeper Kathryn Sanders said: “Baby Tango is currently rocking the redhead look, but it won’t actually be ginger for very long.” She added: “Its fur will begin to darken at around three months of age, and they are usually completely black by the time they reach six months old.”

The yet-to-be sexed youngster spends most of its time snuggled up to mum, but in the same way the females behave in the wild, “auntie” Lee Lee also helps out with babysitting duties. Francois Langurs are one of the world’s rarest monkeys, and originate from northeast Vietnam and China. Classed as critically endangered, their populations are declining rapidly because of habitat loss.

Prospect Park Zoo's Golden Lion Tamarin may be small, but the baby monkey is already giving great big grins. The 2-month-old tamarin is also getting brave, going further out on branches away from its first-time parents, Pablo and Teodora.

Marwell Wildlife is celebrating the birth of one of the most endangered species of Lemur in Madagascar. Wild Alaotran Gentle Lemurs (Hapalemur griseus alaotrensis) are only found inhabiting the reed beds around Lake Alaotra in Madagascar. Marwell Wildlife, which is part of the conservation breeding programme, currently has five Alaotran Gentle Lemurs. John Pullen, the charity’s curator of mammals, said: “The youngster seems to be doing very well and Lelafo is a great mum, who is very protective. We are uncertain of its sex at this stage because we keep our distance to make it as natural as possible for them. Once we know the baby’s sex the animal keepers will find it a suitable Madagascan name.”

Photo credits: Marwell Wildlife

What follows is a video compilation featuring this Gentle Lemur as well as several other species born recetnly at Marwell including a Grevy's Zebra, Capybaras, Saki Monkeys, Ring-Tailed Coatis, and a Scimitar Horned Oryx.

A one-week-old Silver Leaf monkey is benefiting from a little human care at the San Diego Zoo. The female named "Thai" was born on July 3 to a first-time mother. Unfortunately Thai's mother was not holding the newborn in a way that allowed her to nurse naturally, so animal care staff intervened and are bottle-feeding the baby several times each day. The small, orange monkey continues to spend time with her family between feedings so that social bonds remain strong.

The Greater Bushbaby Science Center has announced the birth of two baby Greater Bushbabies. One female Garnett’s Greater Galago was born on May 26, 2011 and one male Brown Greater Galago was born shortly after, June 2, 2011. They were named Chipo, which means “gift” in Shona, and Jenali, which means “mighty” in Swahili - and mark the first and second greater bushbabies born at the Center this year.

“Both babies and their parents are doing superbly,” reports facility director and primatologist Ann Stanley, who has been on staff with the Center since its opening in September of 2006. “We couldn’t be happier with their progress.”

“Healthy infant greater bushbabies weigh 40 – 50 grams at birth on average and both babies fell within that ideal weight range,” explains Stanley. “Today, at about one month of age, the female and male weigh 178 and 183 grams, respectively. They have already over tripled their birth weights in four weeks, so you can see how quickly these little babies grow.” As adults, the bushbabies can be expected to weigh up to 1 kilogram.

So what exactly is a Bushbaby? “They are not monkeys as many people mistakenly believe; Bushbabies are prosimian primates, so taxonomically they are closely related to monkeys but are considered to be more primitive,” explains Stanley.

Life On White, the crack photo team which brought us classic photo spreads like that of Marvin the Spider Monkey, is back with a brand new edition. In April, Erik and the L.O.W. team photographed three Black-and-white-ruffed Lemur babies. The photos were taken when the triplets were just two months old. They are being successfully reared by their Mother at the Mulhouse Zoo in France.

A rare baby Gibbon born at Perth Zoo eight weeks ago is thriving thanks to around the clock care by Perth Zoo staff. Weighing just 610 grams (21 oz.) at birth, White-cheeked Gibbon Nakai is being bottle fed and cared for by Zoo staff until he can be reunited with his mother who had difficulties caring for him shortly after the birth. Nakai is being bottle fed baby milk formula nine times a day including night feeds and has almost doubled his birth weight. He now weighs 1050 grams – just over 37 oz.

Photo and video credits: Perth Zoo

“The White-cheeked Gibbon is a critically endangered species quite literally on the brink of extinction so Nakai and every single gibbon is precious,” says Holly Thompson, Perth Zoo keeper and one of Nakai’s primary carers. Read below the fold for more pictures.

“Nakai spent the first few weeks of his life in a humidicrib to maintain his body temperature but now sleeps in a warm room with his teddy bear which is his surrogate mother for now.”

“We exercise him daily, stretching his arms and swinging him while he hangs on to help strengthen his arms and encourage natural gibbon behaviour. His upper body strength is really developing now and his overall progress has been amazing.